A View From Ringside – Best in the World Weekend

Legend

Moments are what we remember when we are old like when your son crossed the stage to get his Preschool diploma or you find out at 40 you and your wife are having another child. Moments like when your father passed away, you bought your first house or you found out you don’t have cancer.

These are some of my “moments” but this past weekend, many more moments became indelibly etched in my brain as Ring of Honor wrapped up an incredible weekend in New York City.

- I will never forget the moments within Jay Lethal’s ROH World Championship win over Jay Briscoe. Seeing their respective parents cheering on their sons, helping to push them to the finish line. The crowd that never stopped roaring. The tears in Lethal’s father’s eyes after his son’s win. Bobby Cruise’s ring announcement following the match. The loving embrace between Jay Briscoe and his parents after the match outside the locker room. The pure perfection of the match…
- Fans may or may not know but King Corino and I room together on the road. While we have been friends for going on 20 years, rooming together gives us a chance to talk about our broadcasting philosophy and helps us to develop the chemistry we have on the air. When we returned to the hotel after “Best in the World”, Corino and I both agreed that Lethal vs Briscoe was certainly the best match we have ever called and was the best match we have ever seen.

- I will also never forget Mark Briscoe being bodyslammed over the top rope and landing flat on the floor of Terminal 5. Somehow, he got up, continued and eventually won. Truly amazing!

- The work that our ROH Production team does is incredible but Chris Resnick hit a home run with the goosebump-inducing BITW opening. Mark Davis, Mark Brown, Dan Bynum and the rest of the crew made me proud.

- Christopher Daniels never ceases to amaze me. It would be easy for someone of his stature and legacy to rest on his laurels but he continues to change, grow and improve as a ROH star.

- Changes are coming within the Kingdom. I can feel it. As great as Bennett, Taven and Maria Kanellis are, Adam Cole may have different goals in mind.

- On Saturday, ROH taped their 200th episode of TV for the Sinclair Broadcast Group and will also air in a few weeks on Destination America as well. 200 is a huge milestone for ROH and what you’ll see on that episode captures so many great moments over the past few years. Fans will be thrilled with what they see.

- Saturday also featured many emotional moments as Samoa Joe took his final bows in a ROH ring. While his final match was memorable, it was the moments after the match that we will all never forget.

- Think about what Moose has done in one year. He was signed to a contract last year at Best in the World and this year, he wrestled in a match to be the #1 Contender for the ROH World Title. He has worked his way up from the bottom all the way to the top and earned this opportunity. Just like he said he would.

- Roderick Strong told me in our Post-Game recap Saturday that the “new and improved” Strong we see came about as a result of his match against AJ Styles in January 2014. It’s been 18 months since then and Strong has never been better. There may be no stopping Strong.

- Good luck to Michael Elgin as he prepares to compete in this year’s G1 Climax tournament. He’s achieved one goal of becoming ROH World Champion and now he completes a second goal. He’ll be the strongest man in the deep field and I know he will perform to his best.

I am thankful to have this weekend at home so I can enjoy some more moments with my family. Life is a rollercoaster ride that eventually does come to an end so it’s important to make the most of the journey. My ROH “family” and I are on a heck of a ride right now and there is no end in sight. I am blessed to have these special men and women in my life.

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